Spring hinge



Sept. 5, 1961 ROY I 2,998,618

SPRING HINGE Filed Feb. 28, 1957 IN VENTOR.

Leo Theodore Roy flzffwh ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 2,998,618 SPRING HINGE Leo Theodore Roy, South Attleboro, Mass, asslgnor t raft, Inc, a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Feb. 28, 1957, Ser. No. 642,991 9 Claims. (Cl.'16184) The present invention pertains generally to hinges, and more particularly, to the provision of a novel and improved spring hinge construction.

A primary object of the instant invention is the provision of a hinge construction which will readily enable an arcuate leaf spring to be associated therewith, and which is so constructed as to maintain said spring in assembled relation during handling and shipment of the assembly.

Another important object of my invention is the provision of a spring hinge assembly which by its construction will facilitate attachment of the hinge assembly to the container with which it is to be associated.

A further object of the instant invention is the provision of a novel and improved spring hinge assembly particularly adaptable for use with jewelry display containers and the like, although not necessarily limited to such an application.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a spring hinge assembly of the character described wherein novel and improved spring retaining means are employed, said novel retaining means contributing to a longer spring life, and hence, to longer effective use of the overall assembly.

Still another object of the instant invention is the provision of a novel and improved spring hinge construction which may be readily and inexpensively manufactured and assembled, but which, nevertheless, is highly eifective in use.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

-In the drawings which illustrate the best mode presently contemplated by me for carrying out my invention:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of spring hinge assembly in accordance with the instant invention;

FIG. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

-FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the relationship of the parts as the spring is being assembled to the hinge;

FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of a modified form of binge plate prior to the assembly therewith of the spring element;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the hinge plate of FIG. 4 after the spring has been assembled therewith;

FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of another form of hinge plate prior to the assembly therewith of the spring element;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the hinge plate shown in FIG. 6, the spring element having just been assembled therewith;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the hinge plate and spring of FIG. 7 in completely assembled relation; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of still another modified form of my invention showing the hinge plate and spring in completely assembled relation.

The instant invention is concerned primarily with hinges of the type commonly used in connection with containers having abutting body and cover sections. More specifically, containers of this general type have been widely used in connection with the shipment and display of jewelry items, and usually, although not necessarily, the body and cover sections are identical in construction, each comprising a flat surface having a depending front wall, a depending rear wall, and depending side walls. Boxes or containers of this type may be constructed of cardboard, plastic, or any other desirable material, it being apparent that the particular material of which the box is constructed will to a great extent determine exactly how the hinge assembly hereinafter to be described is secured thereto. Actually, the specific way in which my novel and improved hinge assembly is secured to its associated container forms no part of the instant invention, although, as will hereinafter be made apparent, the novel and improved construction of my hinge assembly will serve to facilitate this attachment or securement, no matter what form it may take.

The basic construction of the hinge element per se under consideration is more or less conventional in that it comprises a pair of adjacent hinge plates having staggered hinge rolls adapted to be aligned for the insertion of a hinge pin. In mounting the hinge to its associated container, it will be understood that the hinge plates are secured to adjacent and abut-ting walls of the cover and body section, respectively, and usually to the respective rear walls. As will be obvious, the container cover and body section will then be hingedly and pivotally mounted with respect to each other whereupon the cover may be swung open or closed in well-known fashion.

Not infrequently, it is desirable to incorporate spring means with the hinge structure above described whereby to resiliently maintain the container either in closed or open position. More specifically,-where containers of this type are utilized in connection with the shipment and display of jewelry articles and the like, it is-necessary that means he provided for maintaining the container in closed position and at the same time enabling the container to be snapped open and maintained in said open position whereupon the contents of the container may be'readily and conveniently displayed. This action is most often accomplished by means of a formed leaf spring, preferably arcuate, having hooked ends engageable in specially provided openings in the hinge plates. More specifically, the said openings have heretofore been made large enough for the hooked spring ends to be inserted therethrough when the hinge plates have been positioned at a certain angular relation with respect to each other. In other words, by manipulating the front faces of the hinge plates so that they make somewhat less'than a -degree angle with respect to each other, the spring ends may be inserted, after which the plates are then flattened out thereby increasing the distance between their respective openings, and accordingly, maintaining the spring in assembled relation due to the fact that the hooked ends of the latter will serve to prevent its removal.

A problem heretofore prevalent in connection with the handling and shipment of spring hinge assemblies of the type above described resides in the fact that should the hinge plates inadvertently be moved to the relative position they assume during initial assembly of the spring therewith, it follows that the spring will be free to drop out of its mounting and become disassembled. In order to overcome the annoyance and time lost due to such an undesirable condition, it has been common practice for the hinge manufacturers, after assembling the spring therewithin the manner aforedescribed, to snap the hinge plates against the action of the spring to a position where the front faces to said plates make an angle greater than 180 degrees with each other. In this position, it is impossible for the spring to inadvertently become disassembled. Certain disadvantages have been found to exist as a result of this practice, however, and these disadvantages have prompted the instant invention.

First of all, in order to secure the spring hinge assembly to its associated container, it is essential that the hinge plates be snapped back into their original position wherein the front faces thereof make an angle of less than 180 degrees with respect to each other, since in any other relative position of the hinge plates, sufficient access is not provided for the securement tools. This means that two extra operations have been performed subsequent to the assembly of the spring and hinge and prior to the securement of said assembly to its associated container, namely, the snapping of the hinge plates to what may be referred to as a shipment position wherein it is impossible for the spring to become inadvertently detached therefrom, and secondly, the snapping back of the hinge plates to their original position in order that they may be secured to the container walls. Not only does this extra handling result in loss of time and increased expense, but the possibility also exists that when the hinge plates are snapped back to their original or securement position, the possibility always exists that the plates may inadvertently be pivoted sufficiently close to each other so as to enable the spring to accidentally drop out of its mounting and become disassembled. In addition, when the spring and hinge are in their so-called shipment position, they are under a substantial degree of tension, which means that a certain amount of deformity has been imparted to the spring even before the overall spring hinge has been initially secured within its associated container.

It should be understood, therefore, that the salient concept of the instant invention is the provision of a hinge spring assembly wherein the spring may be readily assembled with its respective hinge, but once so assembled, it will be impossible for it to become inadvertently detached therefrom, no matter what angular disposition the hinge plates may assume with respect to each other. Thus, by virtue of my invention, it is never necessary to snap the hinge plates into a so-called shipment position, but rather it is possible to handle and ship the spring hinge assemblies while in their initial assembled position whereupon they are immediately ready for securement to their respective container upon receipt by the box manufacturer. At the same time, the spring is never under tension until the assembly is actually secured Within its associated container thereby resulting in longer spring life and an end product of increased efiiciency.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly, to FIGS. 1 through 3 thereof, there is shown a spring hinge assembly generally designated at constructed in accordance with the instant invention. More specifically, a pair of hinge plates 12 and 14 having staggered roll portions 16 and 18 respectively are pivotally interconnected by means of a pivot pin 20 extending through the aligned roll portions, all in a well-known manner. The plates 12 and 14 may be provided with openings 22 for the reception of holding lugs or the like during the eventual securement of the assembly 10 to its associated box or container (not shown). It will be understood, however, that any other desirable securement means may be utilized, in which event it is conceivable that the openings 22 could be eliminated entirely.

As will be noted, the plates 12 and 14 are each provided with aligned, centrally positioned openings 24, each of which has an integral. tongue-like projection 26 extending therein. The function of the openings 24 is to receive and maintain the hooked ends 28 of leaf spring 36. As will be obvious, and as well be seen most clearly in FIG. 2, the spring 30 will normally maintain the front faces 32 of the hinge plates 12 and 14 in angular disposition with respect to each other at an angle slightly less than 180 degrees. It therefore follows that when the assembly 10 is secured within a container in the general manner heretofore described, abutment of adjacent edges of the body and cover sections will serve to straighten out the hinge plates whereupon the box will resiliently be maintained in closed position. Upon opening of the box against this resilient pressure, a snapping, toggle-like action willbe effected whereby the cover will be resiliently maintained in its open position, the degree of opening movement being determined by the shape of the spring 30, since the center portion of said spring will be engaged by the central portion 34 of the hinge assembly and will act as a limit stop in connection therewith.

In order to assemble the spring 30 with hinge plates 12 and 14, said plates are moved to the position shown in FIG. 3 wherein the front faces thereof make an angle of somewhat less than degrees with respect to each other. At the same time, the inwardly extending projections or fingers 26 are upwardly bent whereupon the hooked ends 28 of the spring are free to simultaneously move through openings 24. It will be understood that preferably the blanking operation which results in the provision of apertures 24 and fingers 26 also simultaneously bends the fingers to the position shown in FIG. 3. Once the spring has been so inserted, the fingers 26 are bent downwardly to the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 wherein they are in the same plane as that of the plates 12 and 14.

It will, therefore, be obvious that the fingers 26 provide ready means for enlarging the openings 24 sufficiently to enable the spring to be inserted in the manner above described, after which the fingers are bent down to restrict the openings so that the spring will be incapable of becoming inadvertently detached, no matter what relative position the hinge plates may assume. At the same time, it has been found that the restricting of the apertures 24 in no way effects the efficiency of my spring hinge assembly.

As will be apparent, numerous other mechanical constructions may be employed without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention. For example, in FIGS. 4 and 5, there is shown a modified form wherein the hinge plates 36 and 38 are provided with openings 40 adjacent their longitudinal edges, said openings being closed off by means of integral, separated tabs 42. More specifically, when it is desired to assemble the arcuate spring 44 having hooked ends 46 therewith, the tabs are upwardly bent as shown in FIG. 4 whereby to enlarge the openings 40 sufficiently to enable reception of the spring ends 46 when the front surfaces of the plates 36 and 38 are angularly inclined with respect to each other in the same manner as illustrated heretofore in FIG. 3 of the drawings. Once the spring has been so assembled, the tabs 42 are bent downwardly until they reach the position shown in FIG. 5 wherein they are in the same plane as that of their respective hinge plate, in which position the openings 40 are restricted sufficiently to insure maintenance of the spring in assembled relation.

In FIGS. 6 through 8, still another form of my invention is shown wherein hinge plates 48 and 50 are provided with openings 52 closed off by a raised portion 54. As will be seen most clearly in FIG. 7, the raised portions 54 enlarge openings 52 sufiiciently so that when the plates are angularly disposed with respect to each other in the manner shown, the spring 56 may be inserted, after which the portions 54 are flattened out as shown in FIG. 8 to restrict the openings 52. sutficiently to insure maintenance of spring 56 in assembled relation.

FIG. 9 illustrates another embodiment of my invention wherein hinge plates 58 and 60 are provided with openings 62 large enough to enable the ends of spring 64 to be inserted therethrough when the plates are angularly disposed with respect to each other, as shown in FIG. 3. Once the spring has been so assembled, the openings 62 are restricted by swaging, as at 66, this restriction being sufficient to keep the spring from being accidentally detached from the hinge plates.

While there is shown and described herein certain specific structure embodying the invention, it will be manifest to those skilled in the art that various modifications and rearrangements of the parts may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the underlying inventive concept and that thesarne is not limited to the particular forms herein shown and described except in so far as indicated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of assembling an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends to a hinge whereby to spring load the latter, comprising the steps of providing an opening in each of the hinge plates sufiiciently large to simultaneously receive the spring ends therethrough when the hinge plates are disposed at a given angular relation with respect to each other, moving the hinge plates to said given angular relation, inserting the hooked spring ends through said openings, and then restricting said openings so as to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring.

2. The method of assembling an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends to a hinge whereby to spring load the latter, comprising the steps of providing an opening in each of the hinge plates sufficiently large to simultaneously receive the spring ends therethrough when the hinge plates are disposed at a given angular relation with respect to each other, providing means integral with the hinge plates and adjacent each of the openings movable to restrict said openings, moving the hinge plates to said given angular relation, inserting the hooked spring ends through said openings, and then moving said integral means to restrict said openings so as to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring.

3. As an article of manufacture, a hinge comprising a pair of relatively pivotal hinge plates, an opening in each of said plates, said openings each being defined by a first edge portion in substantially parallel relation to the pivot line of said hinge plates and a second edge portion further away from the pivot line, and an integral tongue-like projection carried by said second edge portions and extending partially across each of said openings, said projection being bendable out of the plane of its respective hinge plate to enlarge its respective opening and back into said plane to restrict the latter.

4. In combination, a hinge comprising a pair of relatively pivotal hinge plates, an opening in each of said plates, the combination further comprising an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends interengaged through said openings, and a slot extending from the longitudinal free edge of each of said hinge plates and communicating with the adjacent opening, said slot, edge and opening defining a pair of bendable tabs selectively movable to enlarge or restrict their associated opening.

5. In combination, a hinge comprising a pair of relatively pivotal hinge plates, an opening in each of said plates, the combination further comprising an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends interengaged through said openings, and means integral with said hinge plates and located adjacent said openings for restricting the latter sufliciently to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring, said means comprising an inwardly extending swaged portion.

6. The method of assembling an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends to a hinge whereby to spring load the latter, comprising the steps of providing an opening in each of the hinge plates sufiiciently large to simultaneously receive the spring ends therethrough when the hinge plates are disposed at a given angular relation with respect to each other, moving the hinge plates to said given angular relation, inserting the hooked spring ends through said openings, and then swaging a portion of the hinge plates inwardly across said openings whereby to partially restrict same so as to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring.

7. In combination, a hinge comprising a pair of relatively pivotal hinge plates, an opening in each of said plates, each of said openings being defined in part by an inner edge which is located adjacent to the pivot line of said plates, and in part by an outer edge located adjacent the outer extremity of its respective plate, the combination further comprising an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends interengaged through said openings and engaging the inner edges thereof, and means integral with said hinge plates and located adjacent the outer edges of said openings for restricting the openings sufliciently to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring.

8. In combination, a hinge comprising a pair of relatively pivotal hinge plates, an opening in each of said plates, each of said openings being defined in part by an inner edge which is located adjacent to the pivot line of said plates, and in part by an outer edge located adjacent the outer extremity of its respective plate, the com bination further comprising an arcuate leaf spring having hooked ends interengaged through said openings and engaging the inner edges thereof, and a bendable, integral projection extending inwardly from the outer edge of each opening partially thereacross, for restricting said openings sufliciently to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring.

9. As an article of manufacture, a hinge comprising a pair of relatively pivotal hinge plates, an opening in each of said plates, each of said openings being defined in part by an inner edge which is located adjacent to the pivot line of said plates, and in part by an outer edge located adjacent the outer extremity of its respective plate, and an integral raised portion adjacent the outer edge of each of said openings for enlarging the latter sufficiently to receive the hooked ends of an arcuate leaf spring, said raised portions being adapted to be flattened out after the insertion of the spring ends whereby to restrict the openings sufliciently to prevent inadvertent detachment of the spring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,482,704 Schwartz Feb. 5, 1924 1,631,365 Fahrenfeld June 7, 1927 1,786,978 Aronson Dec. 30, 1930 1,906,111 Shields Apr. 25, 1933 2,243,065 Barrett May 27, 1941 2,481,877 Rhodes Sept. 13, 1949 2,648,485 Young Aug. 11, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 473,915 Canada May 29, 1951 644,1\14 Germany Apr. 24, 1937 

